Amy Ralph Mudge

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FTC’s 19th Public Commission Meeting – Some Drama and Some 6(b) Studies

By Amy Ralph Mudge and Daniel Kaufman on March 16, 2023 Posted in FTC

For those who haven’t been following Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission) news too closely for the past few weeks, there has been lots of turmoil and drama. A few weeks ago – on Valentine’s Day, no less – Commissioner Christine Wilson issued a statement in the Wall Street Journal that, let’s just say, was … Continue Reading

NAD Whitening Strips Case Illuminates How NAD May Incorporate New FTC Health Claims Guidance

By Amy Ralph Mudge on March 8, 2023 Posted in NAD

So our holiday gift from the FTC, which flew a bit under the radar if you ask us, was the Health Products Compliance Guide. This was quietly heralded as an update to the 1998 Dietary Supplement Advertising Guides, but oh dear readers, it is so much more. I don’t want to be overly dramatic, but … Continue Reading

The Year of the Green – Upcoming FTC Workshop on Recyclable Claims

By Daniel Kaufman, Amy Ralph Mudge and Randal M. Shaheen on March 2, 2023 Posted in FTC

Late last year, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced it was examining the Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims, better known as the Green Guides. Consumer and industry interest in green marketing is through the roof these days, and the FTC just announced that it will host a workshop specifically focused on recyclability … Continue Reading

The Podcast You Didn’t Know You Were Missing – AD Nauseam

By Amy Ralph Mudge and Daniel Kaufman on March 1, 2023 Posted in FTC

It’s not every day that we get to announce new content created especially for advertising and marketing enthusiasts who just can’t get enough about legal issues in advertising and the latest from the Federal Trade Commission and the National Advertising Division. With that, we are proud to launch AD Nauseam, a new podcast series from … Continue Reading

BBB National Programs 2022 Annual Report Highlights NAD Trends to Watch

By Amy Ralph Mudge on February 27, 2023 Posted in FTC

We always look forward to the thoughtful and data-rich report National Advertising Division (NAD) issues each year summarizing the work it has accomplished in the past year. Some of the data can be a bit difficult to parse, as some numbers are reported in cases decided in the prior year, while other numbers are reported … Continue Reading

It’s Shark Week at the FTC!

By Amy Ralph Mudge on February 24, 2023 Posted in FTC

We all know Mark Cuban has got it going on. One of the original tech bros, he made his fortune investing in early online streaming services. And is super famous for being rich, owning the Dallas Mavericks, being on Shark Tank, and playing himself being rich on Entourage. Well, he’s upset, and not just because … Continue Reading

Review Hijacking; Abusing Third-Party Marketplaces: FTC Finds Evil in Fairly Common Practices

By Amy Ralph Mudge and Daniel Kaufman on February 20, 2023 Posted in FTC

You make soap, and you come out with a new scent. Then, due to supply issues, you need to change fragrance manufacturers but are confident the new fragrance is almost identical to the old fragrance. Can you use reviews of other soaps in the line? What if you make a widget and you upgrade it, … Continue Reading

Superbowl Ads: Do They Mean the Unemployment Line for Ad Lawyers?

By Amy Ralph Mudge on February 17, 2023 Posted in Advertising

I love the Superbowl. I couldn’t give a toss about football. I am there for the snacks, the snacks and more snacks. And Rihanna (congrats, Mama!). And the ADS! Every year, we ad lawyers measure our worth by how many Superbowl ads we have been asked to opine on. “Which ones are yours, Mom?” my … Continue Reading

FTC Tells Those Seeking Love to Go Your Own Way

By Daniel Kaufman and Amy Ralph Mudge on February 9, 2023 Posted in FTC

Valentine’s Day is almost here, and it is time for the annual reminder from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) that for those seeking love, scam artists are lurking, scheming, and trying hard to separate you from your savings. And we are here to tell you about it because it’s a pretty major source of fraud, … Continue Reading

17th Public Commission Meeting – The FTC is Finally Seeing Green?

By Amy Ralph Mudge and Daniel Kaufman on December 15, 2022 Posted in Advertising

Nothing says Holiday Season like the final public Federal Trade Commission meeting of the very long year. The lights are hung, joy is sort of in the air and we turn to our four commissioners for even more holiday cheer. Well actually, this week there were just three – Commissioner Wilson was not in attendance … Continue Reading

16th Public Commission Meeting – All About the Biz Opp Rule

By Amy Ralph Mudge and Daniel Kaufman on November 18, 2022 Posted in FTC

So today’s Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission) meeting was a bit of a narrowly focused affair – all about the Business Opportunity Rule (Rule), which is a long-standing FTC rule that generally requires “business opportunities” to provide buyers with a one-page Disclosure Document as well as an Earnings Claims Statement if the opportunity makes … Continue Reading

The 15th Commission Meeting Brings Us Back to the 1970s with More Rulemaking

By Daniel Kaufman and Amy Ralph Mudge on October 24, 2022 Posted in FTC

If there were any question whether the current Federal Trade Commission (FTC) was reenacting the 1970s, that question has been put to rest. And unfortunately, it’s not about seeing Grace Jones, Liza Minnelli and Andy Warhol at Studio 54 or wearing our finest velour shirts; the 1970s also saw quite a lot of rulemaking at … Continue Reading

Brought to You by the FTC: Event on Digital Marketing and Blurred Advertising to Kids

By Amy Ralph Mudge and Daniel Kaufman on October 20, 2022 Posted in Advertising, FTC

Amy Mudge and Daniel Kaufman Yesterday, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) hosted an event to look at kids’ digital marketing. Here is a rough transcript; and if you have a spare five hours, you can watch the videos, which will soon be posted on the event page. The big question is whether the FTC will … Continue Reading

The 14th Public Commission Meeting – Dark Patterns, Imposter Rulemaking and Yet Another Policy Statement

By Daniel Kaufman and Amy Ralph Mudge on September 16, 2022 Posted in FTC

After a surprise three-month hiatus, we are back in business with our Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission) public and totally unscripted meetings. Candidly, we were a bit surprised to see the return of these meetings, but not quite as surprised as the realization that Kate Bush had the Song of the Summer in 2022. … Continue Reading

The Matrix of Guardrails for the Metaverse Grows (Plus Weekend Movie Viewing Recommendations)

By Amy Ralph Mudge and Michael Ingram on August 26, 2022 Posted in Advertising, Digital Media

We are not quite at the Matrix moment of a red pill/blue pill choice yet, but we are moving closer every day to the possibility of a fully immersive virtual world. And the regulators and watchdogs are already thinking about how we can protect the kids when they venture not outside in the real world … Continue Reading

TINA Issues Warning Letters to Celeb NFT Endorsers

By Lauren Bass and Amy Ralph Mudge on August 16, 2022 Posted in Advertising

From Eminem to Snoop Dog, Tony Hawk to Lionel Messi, William Shatner to Brie Larson, music, sports, and Hollywood celebrities have eagerly jumped on the NFT (non-fungible token) bandwagon. Whether launching their own collections, purchasing an expensive profile pic, or simply endorsing new artists, celebrities have embraced blockchain technology and have been extolling the virtues … Continue Reading

Straight Talk from NAD: Recent Case Outlines when Comparative Claims Must Be Qualified

By Amy Ralph Mudge on August 12, 2022 Posted in Advertising

Sometimes advertising lawyers can be real drama royals. But I do think the latest in the teeth-straightening wars at NAD deserves some attention. I am not yet sure if this signals a new direction for NAD or if this case will be more limited to cases with comparative savings messages. But its recommendation goes beyond … Continue Reading

NAD Cleans Up ‘Doctor Recommended’ Claim for Baby Wipes

By Amy Ralph Mudge on August 12, 2022 Posted in Advertising

It is too early to tell if we have a baby wipes war developing to compete with the diapers wars, but we certainly have had lots of activity this year involving the disposable cleanup cloths. An earlier action focused on the adequacy of the substantiation of a claim that WaterWipes were the “#1 wipe against … Continue Reading

Dot Com Guideline Revisions Will Focus on Hyperlinks, Dark Patterns, the Metaverse and More

By Daniel Kaufman and Amy Ralph Mudge on June 21, 2022 Posted in FTC

It has been two weeks or so since the FTC announced that it is going to take a close look at whether and how to revise the Dot com Disclosure Guides. For those who are new to this, the dot com guides (technically and annoyingly titled the “.com” guides) are a helpful source document to … Continue Reading

The 13th Public Commission Meeting – an AI Study About Online Scams and, Yes, Another Policy Statement

By Daniel Kaufman and Amy Ralph Mudge on June 16, 2022 Posted in Advertising

We spend many of our working hours – and far too many of our nonworking hours – talking about Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission) issues, and we can confidently state that no one has ever said to us, “I sure do wish the agency would issue yet another policy statement.” With that, we turn … Continue Reading

Pride Month and the Onslaught of Rainbow Corporate Logos

By Daniel Kaufman and Amy Ralph Mudge on June 3, 2022 Posted in Advertising

Many of us have become accustomed to the fact that every June, with the calendar signaling LGBTQ+ pride month, we get the inevitable onslaught of corporate logos incorporating the colors of the rainbow flag. And at the end of June, the logos revert to their less colorful versions. The cynics among us like to focus … Continue Reading

Testimonial Guides Update – The Things That Make Us Go Hmm

By Amy Ralph Mudge, Daniel Kaufman and Randal M. Shaheen on May 20, 2022 Posted in FTC

As we reported yesterday, the FTC has issued its proposal for an update to the Testimonial & Endorsement Guides. These are not THE LAW, because (1) guides are not law and (2) even if we treat them as such, this is a proposal. That said, the changes are an important indication of what the agency … Continue Reading

May 2022 Public Commission Meeting – Meet Commissioner Bedoya, Plus Blasts from the Past, Endorsements and an FTC Legend

By Amy Ralph Mudge and Daniel Kaufman on May 19, 2022 Posted in FTC

In February 2020, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it was going to reexamine the Endorsements and Testimonial Guides (Guides) and sought comment on whether and how the Guides should be changed, including addressing issues involving reviews, affiliate links, children’s perceptions and changes in technology. Two very long years later, the FTC has proposed … Continue Reading

The 10th Public Commission Meeting – Talking About Telemarketing, AMG and, Yes, Dream Incubation

By Daniel Kaufman and Amy Ralph Mudge on April 29, 2022 Posted in FTC

We made it to the 10th public commission meeting. Now, one person who didn’t make it to the meeting today (or at least did not appear on the main screen) was Alvaro Bedoya. We had heard that his confirmation vote to become the fifth commissioner was going to happen this week, but apparently a few … Continue Reading